“When our needs change, we change” reports
Madison County Schools Superintendent, Dr. Ronnie McGehee in response to the
addition of a Mathematics Curriculum Coordinator in the Curriculum Department.
“As we expect our teachers and students to dig deeper into mathematical
concepts, it is important that our department provide the resources necessary
for the transition,” Associate Superintendent of Academic Education Charlotte
Seals commented.

By casting the net wide, district leaders
found a perfect fit for the newly created position in Dr. Jennifer Fillingim, a
Jackson native who was teaching at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville,
TN. Dr. Fillingim holds Bachelor’s and
Master’s degrees in Mathematics and a PhD in Mathematics Education. As an
Assistant Professor at APSU, she was nominated twice for the campus-wide Socrates Award for
Excellence in Teaching and served as the faculty sponsor
for the Galois Mathematics Club, as well as a board member for the Middle
Tennessee Mathematics Teachers organization.

Dr.
Fillingim has presented at multiple mathematics education conferences at
regional, state, and national levels and co-authored the article “Doers of
Mathematics: From the Inside Out.” The article appeared in the national practitioner’s
journal Teaching Children Mathematics,
published by the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. In addition, she recently
led part of a two-week summer workshop hosted by the Center for Mathematics and
Science Education at Ole Miss. Dr. Fillingim’s sessions focused on teaching
Probability and Statistics, relevant to grades 4-8.

On her work with teacher preparation,
Fillingim noted:

“My
goal is to help teachers strengthen their understanding of the content
knowledge and research-based ‘best practices’ for teaching mathematics in K-12
classrooms. A math classroom today looks, sounds, and feels
very different from the classrooms that most of our K-12 teachers experienced
as students. But, when you read the research that was the foundation for the
Common Core Standards for Mathematics (CCSS-M) and the Common Core Standards
for Mathematical Practice (CCSS-MP), it can help alleviate a lot of confusion
and anxiety and also help you recognize a lot of the misinformation that’s out
there about the Common Core.

Because of that, I redesigned the majority of my course
components at APSU to include materials taken directly from the CCSS-M (Common
Core State Standards for Mathematics) and Standards for Mathematical Practice
(CCSS-MP), as well as research that supports their development and appropriate
implementation. I also use these materials in my
work with in-service teachers and with parents. The more informed and confident our
teachers are in what they’re teaching, how to teach it, and why research
supports teaching mathematics this way, the better they are able to equip our
students for long-term success. And the more informed that students’ families
are, the more they can help their students at home and support the hard work of
their teachers.

I frequently receive e-mails from former APSU
students, who are now teachers, sharing how confident they feel after our work
together and how excited they are to help their teaching colleagues understand
the Common Core Standards more clearly.
I hope to continue to build confidence and excitement in mathematics
with the teachers, students, student families, and administrators in Madison
County this year.”

“The experience and background Dr. Fillingim
brings to Madison County Schools will help our teachers better understand
mathematical concepts and in turn, help our students develop confidence in
their problem-solving abilities.” reports McGehee.

MCS teachers will not have to wait to learn
from Dr. Fillingim. Upon notification of her hire, she transitioned flawlessly.
Her first work in MCS was almost immediate as she developed and implemented
professional development sessions for math teachers from kindergarten to high
school.